Gail Burton / The Associated PressAn Army carry team carries a transfer case containing the remains of an officer in June 2010 at Dover Air Force Base.

That's unacceptable, and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has rightly ordered a review due in 60 days. The former commander of the mortuary and two other senior officials have been disciplined, but Secretary Panetta's spokesman left open the possibility of further action.

"Let me make very clear to the families of our fallen heroes that every step will be taken to protect the honor and dignity that their loved ones richly deserve,'' Secretary Panetta said in a written statement.

Bereaved military families should be able to count on that. But the Air Force didn't notify the families of those affected about the problems until months after it finished its investigation. That's troubling, and while the Air Force is defending that decision, keeping families in the dark so long does little to bolster trust.

It's also troubling that the Office of Special Counsel, an independent investigative agency, is faulting the Air Force's handling of the situation. The Office of Special Counsel said that the Air Force was willing to find paperwork violations and errors. But "the findings stop short of accepting accountability for failing to handle remains with the requisite reverence, care and dignity befitting them and the circumstances,'' the agency said.

Careful handling of remains is all the more important because so many of the dead are being killed by roadside bombs. That was the case for remains associated with a soldier killed in Afghanistan. A bag that held the tissue was found empty during processing, with a slit in it. A bag that held the shattered ankle bone of a crew member killed in the crash of an F-15 fighter jet was also found slit and empty.

Personnel at the mortuary also made the decision to remove the damaged arm bone of a Marine because they could not fit him into his uniform. While his family had asked that he be dressed in his uniform for his funeral, the mortuary didn't tell them about the need to remove the bone.

The Air Force now requires a member of the branch of service to which the deceased belonged to be given a say in whether the family should be consulted. That was a needed change. Service members who lose their lives aren't the only ones who deserve the utmost respect and dignity -- so do their families.